SPRINGFIELD -- When the MGM Springfield casino opens its doors in September 2018, it will have transformed more than its 14.5 acre downtown campus.

25,000 visitors per day are expected to travel to the casino -- a rush of new traffic that will have a profound effect on life in Springfield's South End neighborhood.

"It requires a different level of policing," said Police Commissioner John Barbieri at a South End Citizens Council meeting Thursday evening.

Speaking to an audience of about 20 residents, Barbieri and Mayor Domenic Sarno laid out the public safety plan being developed to accommodate the casino crowds.

41 police officers will make up a new unit dedicated to the downtown and South End, including six supervisors and 35 patrol officers. They will receive training in C3 anti-gang policing, as well as deescalation and a new peer intervention program designed to help officers stop each other from committing misconduct.

Springfield Mayor Domenic Sarno and Police Commissioner John Barbieri at a South End Citizens Council meeting on Nov. 3, 2016.Dan Glaun

And the mission of the new unit will go beyond responding to casino-related disturbances, Barbieri said. Supervisors will be chosen by April and officers will begin hitting the beat six months to a year before MGM Springfield opens, as part of an effort to reduce crime and improve quality of life in the neighborhood.

The department's philosophy is on "holistic" policing, which prioritizes identifying problems, talking with community members, connecting residents with services and targeting repeat violent offenders rather than arrest numbers, Barbieri said.

"We're not going to arrest people and resolve this issue. It's about arresting the right people. The people who do not want to accept services and be helped," he said. "Zero tolerance is like an occupying army. The goal is to go into these neighborhoods and treat people like residents."

Sarno said that the approach is paying off, with progress reflected in city crime statistics.

"Overall, believe it or not, crime is down 10 percent in the city of Springfield," Sarno said. "Homicides, even one is too many, are down 40 percent."

After the policing plan was unveiled in March, City Councilor Justin Hurst criticized it as having the potential to create a "fortress of public safety" downtown at the expense of other neighborhoods.

But Barbieri said at the meeting that the increased police presence could help other parts of the city, contending that aving more officers in call-heavy downtown can prevent diversion from other neighborhoods.

"We're hoping that not only will we protect the metro area, but all the neighborhoods will better served because their officers will be able to stay in their areas," he said.

Beyond the new unit, the department will be rolling out police call boxes which will quickly connect users to emergency dispatchers and provide access to real-time camera feeds. A new real-time crime analysis system could give police access to security cameras run by local businesses when incidents occur, Barbieri said.

The department has looked at new ways for officers to patrol the South End. While police horses are not on the table -- "They're beautiful, but it's so much work," Barbieri said -- officers will patrol on foot, by bicycle and on newly acquired motorcycles.

The department plans on rolling out an online system for residents to check crime reports i their neighborhoods. And individual officers will be stationed in police boxes downtown, allowing pedestrians to file in-person reports.

Barbieri and Sarno were joined at the meeting by City Councilors Bud Williams, Melvin Edwards and Adam Gomez.

Dennis Murphy, a representative for MGM Springfield, said that the company has monthly meetings with the department and the city to work on the public safety plan. He said he believes the department should obtain state-of-the-art technology and visit other cities with major casinos to prepare for MGM's opening.

"It would be short sighted to not want to spend money and not invest and not be intelligent about this," Murphy said.

Residents raised concerns about traffic flow, parking and insufficient sidewalk lighting during a public comment period.

Sarno said that his team was looking at improving the lighting in the South End, and said he would try to organize another public meeting with Department of Public Works head Chris Cignoli to discuss traffic and parking issues.